These lacto-fermented jicama, carrots, jalapeño and onions are the perfect pickle to have with tacos or just to snack on! With the exception of kimchi and sauerkraut that you can typically find in the refrigerated section of the market, most store-bought pickles are made using acetic acid fermentation with vinegar, rather than lacto-fermentation. With lacto-fermentation (a.k.a. lactic acid fermentation), you create a safe environment for the probiotic lactobaccillus bacteria on the vegetables to create their own acid, rather than adding acid from an outside source.

The resulting pickles have a different kind of sourness than your typical grocery store pickle, without the flavor of vinegar, and are loaded with probiotics. When done correctly, this ancient method of food preservation is completely safe and incredibly healthy.

Fermentation Basics

Similarly to how yeast in beer and wine consume sugar to create alcohol, lactobaccillus consumes sugar to create lactic acid, lowering the PH of the ferment and producing an environment that is inhospitable for bad bacteria. In order to give the lactobaccillus time to work its magic, you need to create the right environment for this process to take place. The main factors to pay attention to when making the lacto-fermented jicama are detailed below, including salt, water-source, lack of oxygen, the presence of good bacteria, and hygiene.

Equipment

This kit with fermentation lids and weights are a great option for both beginners and experts (Brad Leone uses them on It’s Alive with Brad!). The weights keep your veggies submerged and the lids allow oxygen and carbon dioxide to escape, while keep anything bad from getting in. Plus, they’re compatible with ordinary canning jars, so you don’t need an expensive fermentation crock to get started.

Salt

This is your best weapon against bad bacteria since lactobaccillus can tolerate salt, while most bad bacteria cannot. It also helps keep your veggies nice and crispy through the ferment. We’ll provide instructions on how to calculate this, but basically 2%-3% of the total weight of your brine and vegetables should be salt. Don’t use iodized salt. Kosher salt works fine, but you can also use something fancier like Himalayan salt or Celtic sea salt if desired.

Water

We use a reverse-osmosis filter, but other filtration options will typically work fine. Just don’t use straight tap water, since it contains chlorine, chloramine and often fluoride. This article from Cultures for Health goes into more detail.

Oxygen

You’ll need to create an anaerobic (oxygen-free) environment for a successful fermentation. If you want to accomplish this using what you already have around your house, you can fill ziploc bags with water and placing them on top of the brine and veggies, before setting the jar lid loosely on the top. Again, I strongly prefer to use fermentation weights and airlock lids because they’re easy and make it less like that bad bacteria will get in and ruin the entire ferment.

Good Bacteria

Lactobaccillus (good bacteria) naturally exists on the outsides of fruit and vegetables. Starter cultures are available, but aren’t really necessary when you’re just pickling vegetables. When you wash your veggies, just gently rinse off any dirt. Don’t use a veggie spray or sanitizer, or you’ll end up removing the naturally occurring good bacteria.

As a general rule, you also don’t want to peel your vegetables, since the lactobaccillus is on the outside.  For certain vegetables that have a tough, inedible skin, you can probably get away with removing it, as long as there are enough other vegetables in the ferment to contribute lactobaccillus. I chose to peel the jicama in this recipe, since the skins are incredibly tough, even after pickling. The onions and garlic are obviously peeled as well, but the jalapeños and carrots should contribute enough lactobaccillus to get the fermentation going.

Hygiene

Wash your hands before starting a ferment, and make sure your tools and jars are also clean. You don’t have to go through a detailed sanitization process for the lacto-fermented jicama, like you would with beer, but basic hygiene will increase your chances of success.

How to Make Lacto-Fermented Jicama (detailed walkthrough)

Cutting the Vegetables

How you cut the veggies is up to you. We prefer to cut the jicama into sticks, onion into wedges (or thick slices) and the carrot and jalapeño into slices. If you want perfect slices, a mandolin can be really helpful for this step, but it’s also super easy to cut yourself by mistake. If you’d like to use a mandolin, I would strongly recommend using a cutting glove as well.

Peel the garlic and crush using the flat side of a knife. No need to chop the garlic!

Note: As a reminder, don’t wash your veggies! It’s okay to rinse them, but washing or peeling will remove the lactobacillus, which is crucial for fermenting. I only peel the jicama (which has exceptionally thick skin), since there is still plenty of lactobaccillus on everything else.

Measuring The Salt

Place two crushed garlic cloves in each jar. Divide the cut veggies between the three jars and fill each with filtered water, leaving at least 1.5 inches of head space from the top of the jar.

After filling each jar with veggies and water, complete the following steps to calculate how much salt to use.

1. Set the units of your scale to grams. Then place an empty jar on the scale and press “tare” to zero it out.
2. Remove the empty jar and set one of the filled jars in its place. The weight displayed on the scale is the weight of just the veggies and water, and does not include the jar.
3. Multiply the weight of the veggies and water by 0.025 to determine how much salt to add. (That’s 2.5% of the weight)
4. With the filled jar still on the scale, press “tare” once again. Then measure the salt (by weight) as you add it to the jar.
5. Set the jar aside and repeat with the remaining jars (starting back at step one).

Sealing the Jars

Once the salt has been added, secure a lid on each jar and shake the jars until the salt is almost completely dissolved.

Remove the lids, then place the weights in the jars and retighten the lids. Use the pump a few times on each jar to remove any trapped air bubbles.

Fermenting the Pickles

Let the jars rest at room temperature for about 7-10 days. To test if the lacto-fermented jicama pickles are ready, feel free to open the jar and try one of the veggies. Just make sure your hands and any utensils you use are clean so you don’t contaminate the ferment.

Alternatively, you can keep pumping the jars every day, removing the carbon dioxide bubbles created during fermentation. The amount of carbon dioxide produced will lessen significantly when the lacto-fermented jicama pickles are ready to eat. 

The finished pickles will be sour, but shouldn’t taste or smell rotten. If they smell rotten, throw them out.

Once the Lacto-Fermented Jicama pickles are ready, transfer them to the fridge to slow down the the fermentation process. At this point you can remove the weights and fermentation lids and replace them with normal jar lids instead.

Closing Note

If you made this lacto-fermented jicama recipe, please let us know in the comments, and don’t forget to tag us on social media at @we_make_pretty. Try it with our Fried Cauliflower Tacos, and if you want to add more fermented foods to your diet, be sure to check out our Tempeh Bacon BLT. Enjoy!